Optimal Configuration for your Windows 10 Device

The following guide explains how to configure your Windows 10 PC for optimal Signagelive performance.

There are Mandatory Configuration Steps, and Additional Configuration Steps beneath.

Mandatory Configuration Steps

Step 1: Install the latest Windows Updates

The first stage is to ensure your hardware device has all of the latest Windows Updates installed:

Firstly please click on the Start button and then search for ‘Windows Update’ .

From the Windows Update window, please click the Check for Updates option (a grey button in the centre of the screen).

After checking for updates, and if you have any, please click the Install Updates button.

Your updates will now download and install (you may need to restart your device).

You may also wish to now switch off Windows Update so that it does not attempt to install any further updates or show window prompts on your display in the future. If you wish to take this step then please follow the section "Step A: Switch off your Windows Updates".

Step 2: Disable the UAC (User Account Control) Settings

The next step of configuring your player is to turn off the UAC (User Account Control) to ensure that no notifications are shown when programs try to install software or make changes to your Windows settings.

To begin this process of disabling the setting you will need to:

Please click on the Start button and then select the Control Panel option.

From the Control Panel window, please now click the User Accounts option.

Please now move the slider down to the lowest option, which is the ‘Never Notify’ setting at the bottom.

To now save your changes, please click on the OK button.

When this setting has been made you can now proceed to the next stage of this guide.

Please Note: Please ensure that your user account is set to have Administrator privileges and set to auto-login to Windows if you require this.

Step 3: Configuring the Power Options

The next step to set the Power Options correctly on your device:

Firstly please click on the Start button and then select Control Panel.

From the Control Panel window please now click on the Power Options setting.

From the 'Select a Power Plan' window, under the Balanced (recommended) option please click the Change Plan Settings option.

From the 'Change settings for the plan: Balanced' you will need to ensure:

Option to Change

Correct Setting

Turn off the Display is set to

Never

Put the Computer to Sleep is set to

Never

If you make any changes, click the Save Changes button and then go back into the same 'Change Plan Settings' area again and click Change Advanced Power Settings. If you made no changes, just click Change Advanced Power Settings to proceed.

Under the Power Options window, you will now need to set the following:

Option to Change

Correct Setting

Under the Hard disk option (Turn off hard disk after setting)

Never

Under the Wireless Adapter Settings option, set the Power Saving Mode setting to

Maximum Performance

Under the Sleep option, set the Sleep after setting

Never

Under the Sleep option, set the Hibernate after setting

Never

Under the PCI Express option, set the Link State Power Management option

Off

Under the Display option, set ‘Turn off display after’ option to

Never

When all of the settings have been set, you can now click on the Apply button to proceed to the next stage of making settings.

Here it is a good idea to check the settings you have just made to ensure they correct, and have been saved.

Step 4: Configuring your Page File

Making this change will ensure your player is able to handle its own resources as required. You can do this by following these steps:

Firstly please click on the Start button and then select Control Panel from the menu.

From the Control Panel window, please select the System option.

For the Control Panel Home window, please click Advanced System Settings option from left side menu.r

From the System Properties window, please now click the Advanced tab.

On the Advanced tab, please click the Settings button under the Performance area.

From the Performance Options window, please now click the Advanced tab.

Under the Virtual Memory area, please click the Change button.

You will now be on the Virtual Memory window and will need to set your player to either "Automatically manage paging file for all drives" or "System Managed Size".

When you have made your selection, you can now click the OK button to finish.

Step 5: Setting the Performance Options

The next step to configuring your player is to set the Performance Options on your device so that it is optimised for Signagelive. This can be done by following these steps:

Set your Theme

Firstly please right click anywhere on your Windows Desktop.

From the menu that appears, please click on the Personalise option.

Under the Personalisation window, please click on the Themes option on the left hand side menu.

Please now click on the Theme Settings option and then select to use the Windows theme from the Apply a Theme section.

Set your Performance

Once finished selecting the theme, please now open the Control Panel

From the Adjust your Computer's Settings window, please click the System option.r

From the Control Panel Home window, please click Advanced System Settings from the left side menu.

From the System Properties window, please now click the Advanced tab.

On the Advanced tab, please click the Settings button under the Performance area.

On the Performance Options window, please click the Adjust for Best Performance tick box.

All settings below should now be un-ticked, so now please click the Custom option and ensure the following settings are ticked:

You will now be required to set the following options within the Visual Effects window:

Option to Change

Correct Setting

Smooth Edges of Screen Fonts

Ticked

All other options on Performance Options window

Unticked

Once selected you can now click the Apply button to finish and move on.

Step 6: Turn off the Recovery Failures

The next step is to configure your player so that in the event it is unexpectedly powered off that it does not show the Windows Recovery screen, to do this please go through these steps:

Find the 'Hardware decoder to use:' dropdown, and set this to be DXVA2 (Copy-Back).

Please Note: If you have a VISION PC, you will need to use the DXVA2(Native) option to avoid playback freezing.

When you have completed the above. Please click either Apply and Close.

Now, under Select Win7DSFilterTweaker select Preferred Decoders

Under 32-bit decoders section select the “LAV Video” radio button in the H.264 section

Under 32-bit decoders section select the "MPCVideoDec" radio button in the VC-1 section.

When finished click “Apply & Close”.

You have now successfully installed/configured the Basic K Lite Codec Pack software and Configured your Codecs for Handling Video Playback. You can move to the next stage of the process.

Step 8: Install the DirectX software

The next step of the process is to ensure you have DirectX installed onto your hardware device. To begin installing DirectX you will need click on this link and it will guide you through the rest of the process.

Step 9: Install Adobe Flash Player

The next step is to ensure you have the latest version of Adobe Flash Player installed onto your hardware device by going to this URL and downloading the latest version of the software.

After you have installed Adobe Flash Player we recommend you follow these steps to prevent any update messages:

Please click on the Start button and then select the Control Panel option.

From the Adjust your Computer's settings window, please click the Flash Player option.

With the Flash Player Settings Manager window now open, please click the Advanced tab.

On the Updates tab, under the Updates section, please click the 'Never check for updates' option.

You can now close the Flash Player Settings Manager window.

Step 10: Install Signagelive

The next step of the configuration is to now download the latest version of Signagelive from your network and then install this onto your chosen hardware player. You can visit this article.

Step 11: Configuring your Windows Firewall

After you have installed Signagelive then the next stage of configuration is to set up your Windows Firewall. Whether you wish to have your firewall switched on or off is up to you, however, we recommend you follow the steps below:

To begin please click on the Start button and then select the Control Panel option.

On the Windows Firewall window, please select Allow a program or feature through Windows Firewall from the left side menu.

On the Allow programs to communicate through Windows Firewall window, please click the Allow another Program button.

On the Add a Program window, please now click on the Browse button and you will then need to locate both the Signcontroller.exe and Signagelive MediaPlayer.exe on our player. Both of these will need to be added through the firewall.

When selecting both options you will need to click the Add button to ensure they are added to the firewall.

Once you have allowed both through the firewall they will both now be added to your Allowed Programs and Features list. You can now click OK to finalise this process.

We also recommend that you check whether your graphics or networks drivers need an update on your device. Depending on the type of hardware you have, please load up one of the following links in a web browser on your device and the Automatic Update Utilities will help you discover whether you need make any updates: